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PARIS – Even before the war in sanctions-hit Iran, inflation was running at nearly 50 per cent and anger over the economy had fuelled massive anti-government protests. After more than five weeks of conflict, problems have only mounted.

Beyond the daily fear of attacks, the most immediate effect of the war has been another upward spiral in the prices of everything from basic goods – food, drink, medicine or diapers – to lunches in trendy city cafes.

Mr Amir, a 40-year-old Iranian from the Tehran suburbs, told AFP recently how the price of the brand of toast he usually buys had suddenly jumped from 700,000 rials (S$0.68) to 1,000,000 rials.

A friend of his had to pay 180 million rials for a cancer treatment tablet that was around three million before the US and Israeli attacks on the country began on Feb 28.

“And they have to buy a tablet every 20 days,” he explained.

Artist Kaveh who lives in the capital, explained how the popular cafe Dobar in downtown Tehran “increased prices by 25 per cent on all items in a single day”.

Even in the north-west of Iran, usually well-stocked with imports from neighbouring Turkey, “some products cost three times their usual price,” a 50-year-old woman told an AFP journalist.

In a sign of the galloping inflation, the central bank introduced a new ten-million rial banknote in the middle of March, the latest and largest denomination in circulation.

The month before that, it had unveiled a then-r...